The little tourism-centered community along the edges of Bear Lake is reeling after a boating accident Saturday, in which a woman was pulled under a propeller and lost both of her legs.

The woman in her mid-30s had been riding in a tube being towed behind the boat, according to the Bear Lake County Sheriff’s Office on the Idaho side of the lake that’s split across the Utah-Idaho border.

She got sucked under the boat and was hit by the propeller, causing catastrophic injuries to both legs.

The sheriff’s office has provided only a few details, citing the family’s request for privacy, so some of the timeline is unclear. But the woman was ultimately helped by bystanders on the beach who applied tourniquets to her injuries, the sheriff’s office said in a statement.

“These actions ultimately saved her life,” the office noted.

She was flown to a hospital, where both of her legs were amputated, according to the sheriff’s office.

A GoFundMe page for the woman — which the sheriff’s office said has been verified — also said the injuries required bilateral amputation. That fundraiser does not identify the woman, but says she is a devoted wife and mother of three kids, ages 16, 8 and 2.

The GoFundMe page says she has already had multiple surgeries since Saturday and remains hospitalized. The sheriff’s office reports she is stable. Its investigation is ongoing, and the office does not have further information to share Wednesday.

“We’ve given her space to focus on her medical treatment,” Bear Lake County Sheriff Bart Heslington said over the phone Wednesday.

That accident happened at the same time as several other emergency calls, the sheriff’s office said. A boat with people on board also sank, and the passengers had to be rescued from the water. And the sheriff’s office had to quickly get out a child who had been locked inside a car in 90-degree heat. There were also several car crashes across the weekend.

This chaotic line of events comes as the lake — known for its clear blue waters and the famous raspberry shakes offered at shacks along the shoreline — has become more popular.

That strain and stress, said Jared Hirschi, who works at and whose family owns Bear Lake Rentals, has become common as more tourists are flocking to the area.

“It’s picking up for sure,” Hirschi said. “There’s more and more people every year around the lake.”

Boat rentals have dramatically increased, he added. Parts of the lake are sometimes so crowded that it’s hard to tell where one boat starts and another ends.

Sheriff Heslington said most of the recreation that draws people to the lake — boating, water skiing, driving ATVs around the shore — are powersports that “all have inherent risks.”

“It’s easy to lose focus on just having a good time and not on the safety measures,” he added.

Heslington said he sees the situation as a scary mix. There are “unprecedented” crowds of people who are in a vacation mode while using dangerous equipment, and often the water conditions on the lake’s large surface area can change quicker than anyone expects.

The businesses around the lake expect a busy season in the summer, but some wonder if that could be leading to more accidents. Comments across social media blamed the lake’s increased popularity for decreased safety.

One woman wrote: “The lake is definitely getting dangerous.” She added that the last time she visited, she saw “so many jet skis just barely miss people out there swimming.”

Another added: “We live here at Bear Lake and it has been one extremely rough summer on the water and around the lake.”

One man said the lake is “way overrun with people.”

Two people have died this summer at Bear Lake. A 56-year-old man died while diving in June. And a 17-year-old boy died earlier this month after falling off a paddleboard.

A woman also said she was hit by a personal watercraft while she was paddleboarding on the lake last month. She said she had bruises and a concussion.

And in 2024, an 18-year-old woman died after jumping off a boat when her hair got tangled in the propeller.

One of the deadliest days on the lake came in June 2015, when a boat capsized and four people, including three kids, died. At the time, the accident renewed calls for required boat safety measures.

Hirschi said he believes safety is taken seriously at the lake, but tragedies happen. At Bear Lake Rentals, he said, anyone renting a boat is made to listen to a safety training about how to avoid injuries. Heslington said his office also tries to instruct visitors, particularly about wearing life jackets.

“It’s always a shock,” Hirschi added. “We learn from it, and we do our best to prevent it in the future.”